BLM proves useful for Texas politicos

By Lauren McGaughy

April 24, 2014

AUSTIN - On the heels of an armed standoff between federal land managers and ranchers in Nevada, Texas politicos on both sides of the aisle this week are beating their chests over what the U.S. Bureau of Land Management says is a routine review of federal lands along the Red River.

Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott led the charge, suggesting the BLM, the political right's newest federal bogeyman, is poised to try to seize up to 90,000 acres from private landowners along a 116-mile stretch of the river that forms the natural boundary between Texas and Oklahoma.

"Private landowners in Texas have owned, maintained, and cultivated this land for generations," Abbott wrote in a letter to BLM Principal Deputy Director Neil Kornze on Tuesday. "Despite the long-settled expectations of these hard-working Texans along the Red River, the BLM appears to be threatening their private property rights by claiming ownership over this territory. Yet, the BLM has failed to disclose either its full intentions or the legal justification for its proposed actions. Decisions of this magnitude must not be made inside a bureaucratic black box."

Other politicians, including Abbott's opponent in November, Sen. Wendy Davis, and Leticia Van de Putte, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, were quick to say they would fight any attempt by the federal government to take private lands in Texas.

A BLM spokesman insisted the agency is not looking to take any private land, saying the tracts in question belong the federal government, as laid down in a 1923 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that defined the border between Texas and Oklahoma.

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"The BLM is not, I can say categorically, not seeking to seize any privately held land along the Red River," BLM Public Affairs Specialist Paul McGuire said. "What we are trying to do is to determine how and whether these lands can be managed for the benefit of the American people."

According to the BLM, land between the middle of the river and its south gradient bank always has been in the public domain and was never private, even if citizens bought, sold or cared for it.

A 1988 court case by Red River landowner Tommy Henderson, who lost his claim over a fairly large tract of land, gives the agency solid precedent, Texas Farm Bureau spokesman Gene Hall said.

McGuire, however, admitted the issue is complicated by the fact that the agency has not undertaken a comprehensive survey of the land, and will not, unless someone sues or the agency needs to map out the area for a specific use.

McGuire said the agency has never undertaken a resource management plan in the area before because it is difficult to determine where public land ends and private land begins. The review is part of a broader look at the management of all public land in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas overseen by the BLM.

Report pending

The BLM review of the land in question began last July and included a public hearing in January, during which U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry first raised concerns. The agency expects to release a "scoping report" detailing the range of public comments it has received.

The issue may be complicated from a land management perspective. Politically speaking, however, the choice of whether to side with the federal government or private landowners is easy, particularly in Texas, where little land is under federal control and land rights remain a sensitive subject.

"Any opportunity for a Texas statewide leader, the governor or attorney general, to stand up against the federal government is at least a short-term gain, depending on, of course, how it all turns out," said Southern Methodist University political scientist Cal Jillson.

"It's a no-lose proposition," agreed Jerry Polinard of UT-Pan American, who quipped, "I'm shocked, shocked, to find the AG is taking a position that might be politically advantageous for him."

'Come and Take It!'

Abbott's gubernatorial campaign already is fundraising on the issue, sending an email to supporters Thursday saying the candidate "has fought back, telling the feds to 'Come and Take It!'"

The choice for elected officials and candidates is made easier by the fact the BLM has been thrust into the national spotlight like never before this month, after a protracted legal fight over a Nevada rancher's grazing rights on public lands turned into an armed standoff. The agency now is the poster child for government overreach among political conservatives and red state liberals alike.

In his letter to Kornze, Abbott referred only to a "potential" seizure of private land and the "notion" the federal government could overreach.

Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, was more emphatic.

"This is an aggressive overreach, unfair, inappropriate grab by the BLM," Riddle said, adding she believes the BLM's claims over the 90,000 acres are, "wrong, No. 1, and No. 2, don't make sense. I think the BLM just doesn't have enough to do."

Bipartisanship urged

Republicans are not alone on the issue.

Davis issued a statement saying she "strongly opposes any potential seizure of private property" by the BLM.

Van de Putte, D-San Antotio, said she would "continue to do whatever it takes to protect a landowner's legacy" and urged a bipartisan effort to review federal property rights laws during Texas' 2015 legislative session.

The BLM's draft plan for the land will not be ready for 18 to 24 months yet, the agency said, and a final plan will not be released until 2018 at the earliest. This means Abbott can rack up a political win by criticizing the BLM's moves in the last few months of his tenure without having to take any direct action.

Riddle said she thinks Abbott "absolutely" will litigate the issue before his term is out.

A spokesperson for Abbott's office said the office first needs to find out the BLM's intentions with the land before making a decision on legal steps. If any private land is seized, spokeswoman Lauren Bean then said, "all legal actions are on the table."

Riddle said she and other state lawmakers were planning to head to the area Monday to meet with local landowners, including Henderson. She could not confirm who else would join her, but McGuire of the BLM said no one from the agency has been invited to attend.